Answer:
While past studies had focused on examining how sea walls and armoring affect changes in habitat and species distribution, this model also takes into account nutrient cycling, connectivity, productivity and trophic structure. The team found that shoreline armoring negatively effects every single one of these categories.
Explanation:
Sea levels are rising and as a consequence so are the number of sea walls. However, until now the environmental impacts of sea walls and other engineering “armoring” have been inadequately studied. A team of scientists from UC Santa Barbara and the National Science Foundation's Long-Term Ecological Research (LTER) network recently collaborated to publish a study in the journal Estuaries and Coasts that analyzes a broad range of environmental effects from shoreline armoring in soft marine sediments, shedding light how such infrastructure is changing more than just landscapes.
